


Spirit Weapons (Vocaloid AU)

by juli_oli_arts



Category: Vocaloid
Genre: F/F, I had a dream about this idea so now i am doing it lol, I was planning to make this into a comic but writing is so much easier, M/M, Multi, had to get it out of my system
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2021-01-19
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:15:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28178232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/juli_oli_arts/pseuds/juli_oli_arts
Summary: A long time ago, spirit weapons appeared in order to protect mortals from evil and assist armies in battle. Many weapons are renowned and respected for their power and merit; however, after over 800 years of their existence, they've become commonplace, and thus mediocre.Kaji (VY2), the all powerful Sword of Twilight, is tired of being used as a gardening tool. They begin to lose all hope in their reputation, when suddenly a humble traveller summons them for an important, action packed mission.Now they can demonstrate their true power! Although, there seems to be more to this humble traveller than what Kaji assumes.
Relationships: Gumi/Hatsune Miku, Kamui Gakupo/VY2 Yuuma, SeeU/VY1 Mizki (Vocaloid)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 3





	1. Prologue: The Mediocre Sword of Twilight

**Author's Note:**

> Quick pronoun note:  
> VY2 Kaji: He/they  
> VY1 Kazumi: She/they  
> Kamui Gakupo: He/Him  
> Fukase: She/He/They
> 
> This doesn't take place in any exact timeline or any real place, I basically inspired most things off of Japanese and Puerto Rican aesthetic.  
> This is also inspired by countless other works that include a weapon/wielder relationship, such as Noragami, Soul Eater, Blue Exorcist etc.  
> I hope you enjoy ^^

Many centuries ago, beasts roamed the earth. Their appearance was sparked by an all-powerful weapon with the ability to corrupt lost souls and turn them into creatures of destruction. This weapon, however, was not wielded by anyone. In fact, the weapon was a person. This was the first time anyone had witnessed something so extraordinary: a person’s will transforming them into a spirit weapon, an instrument of immense power.

At this point, only three spirit weapons existed in the world, going by the names Lord Leon, Lord Lola, and Lord Miriam. The three dedicated themselves to protecting humanity, but by a strange turn of events, Miriam was corrupted by evil. Now known as the Whistle of Woe, she went by this one philosophy: “In order to create a pure world, all impurities walking it must be purged.” Many followed her philosophy and sought to be accepted and noticed by her, but the majority were opposite.

Her power consisted of controlling lost souls with her song, turning them into monstrous creatures, whose deeds ranged from minor inconveniences - such as pests ruining farmer’s crops - or terrible disasters - wiping out populations of thousands in less than a day. This was solely based on the notion that the casualties were “impure”, and deserved death.  
For years, the world lived like this, adapting to the havoc she caused. Until one day, Lord Leon and Lord Lola, also known as The Twin Gauntlets, couldn’t stand it anymore. Convincing her became impossible, and thus they sought to defeat her in battle. In time more wishes were granted, and more spirit weapons came to be, fighting alongside the twins. Their story and efforts against Miriam changed the world for the better, as they beat down beast after beast alongside other devoted spirit weapons, until it finally led to her defeat. This legendary tale of the two is passed down generation after generation, and recorded in stone tablets.

What a victory! The world was safe from her tyranny. Beasts would still be an occurrence, but now humanity could stand a chance. What was even better, armies had collaborated with spirit weapons to create harmonious unions between wielder and weapon. The world was a safer place now that these unions were forged. Spirit weapons were admired all over the world for their loyalty and strength. Temples and altars were built to worship and summon them when they were most needed. The only unfortunate thing is that that was 200 years ago, and Lord Leon and Lord Lola had long retired from their duties. 

More and more spirit weapons came into being, making their presence common, leading mortals to take advantage of them whenever they could. For example, mortals could go up to an all-powerful sword’s stone zemi in an altar and, instead of asking for heroic deeds, they would pray for them to trim their garden, a menial and mediocre task. The sword mentioned would be Kaji, the Sword of Twilight, and they were tired of being treated like a garden tool.


	2. Chance Encounter

Spirit weapons are created when a soul is severely desperate for a wish the moment it leaves its dead body. The conditions of this to happen are either very specific, or conditions apply, and not anyone can become a spirit weapon. It’s been 800 years since Kaji became the Sword of Twilight. For a majority of those years, they were used in great battles, leveling the battlefield and slashing characters on the sides of mountains. An instrument of protection and elegance that was unrivalled by anyone else. Never did they imagine that at this moment they’d be using their arm as a blade to shave a hairy man’s back. With every swipe they cringed, chills going up their spine whenever a spare hair touched their skin. The moment the shaving cream was off their blade, they shook their hands in the air to get any sort of invisible grime off of them.

 _I am so close to destroying my zemi and burying the pieces 100 feet underground._ They thought with a grumble, bidding the now hairless man farewell. The only way spirit weapons could be summoned is by praying at their zemi, a stone figure representing them. Their idea was plausible, but doing such a thing would make them look bad in the mortal realm.

“Thank you so much, Lord Kaji! I haven’t felt this good in ages!” The hairless man waved, looking up and down at their gloriously smooth body.

Kaji only stretched their smile as a response, feeling like as if they were forced to sell their body.

Their form twisted and turned in light as they transported themself to the spirit realm. This realm was no different than the mortal realm, except almost everything was colorless. The only colorful thing was sky, which was either a bright blue or a deep orange. The ground was bathed in a translucent fog. If any mortal were to see it, they would be astounded beyond belief. But to Kaji and many other weapons, this was a home away from home.

Kaji crawled up the steps of a gazebo and threw themself onto a hammock face first, groaning against the thread.

Sitting on the stairs of the gazebo was Kazumi, Kaji’s twin sister.

“Seems like you had a good day.” They jeered, leaning on their elbows against a step above and crossing their legs.

“I’m really not in the mood today, Kazumi.”

“Haha, no worries. I am more entertained by doing nothing than by talking to you.”

Kaji swept some fog in Kazumi’s direction, but it didn’t affect them. This was playful sibling banter, but every once in a while they got on each other’s nerves.

“You’re so lucky,” Kaji said after a moment of silent sulking. “You’ve got a bond with such a powerful empress, are always doing awesome things, and you’re just a metal fan. I’m jealous.”

Kazumi made a face when they mentioned they were “just a metal fan,” but they brushed the remark away. “Maybe if you valued every wish made at your zemi, you would’ve found a bond long ago.”

“Shut up, no way am I giving some pleb my one-sided affection.”

A “bond” between a weapon and wielder was a phenomenon that occurred when each party made a commitment to become a powerful duo, and thus unstoppable. Each beings' power would be combined to become the ultimate pairing, but this would come at a cost. This would also void a weapon’s zemi, since they would be committed to one master. Many weapons wished to savor a bond with a mortal for countless reasons. But other weapons were wary of bonds, and thus avoided them. The only way to break a bond would be if either the weapon or the wielder died.

Despite the controversy of bonds, Kaji didn’t care. They’d been doing menial work for so long that they didn’t care about the consequences. They just wanted to be called by an all-powerful warrior who would take advantage of their incredible abilities, pretty or ugly, as long as they could show what they were made of. Of course, 800 years later, that still hasn’t happened.

Kazumi shrugged at their brother’s complaints. “Just saying. You know I’m right.” They probably were.

Kaji groaned, seeming as if they were melting into the fabric of the hammock, becoming one themself. They fantasized about fighting beasts and the like alongside someone who valued them. For some reason, the wielder they fantasized about always had the same face and look, but they couldn’t attribute it to a real person. Perhaps it was just their default imagination. Kaji was about to fall asleep when suddenly, their large earrings began glimmering with a soft tune.

“Ugh, another one?!” They shot up from the hammock with a groan.

Many weapons had an article of clothing or jewelry that indicated whether someone was praying for them at their zemi. In Kaji and Kazumi’s case, their earrings were what did this.

Which was especially annoying considering the sound would blast in one’s ears randomly.

Kazumi was still sitting on the stairs of the gazebo, braiding some flowers together. “Oh no, my life sucks because I’m so popular, waahh.” They mocked their brother, being met with another waft of fog as the other finally crawled out of the hammock. “Tell me how it goes. Or don’t haha.” Kazumi added. Kaji mocked them back with an ugly face, and their form began to twist and turn in light as they teleported to the mortal realm. They just wanted to get this job over with.

When a spirit weapon teleported to their zemi, they would be dressed in traditional robes to demonstrate their power. Kaji appeared in a mask of a spiked fowl, bright red with bright polka dots of yellow and sky blue. Their long, frilly sleeves flowed in the energy that emitted from the intricately carved stone that they floated above, their arms out to meet whoever decided to bother them again.

“Make it quick, mortal. Let me guess: grass cutting? Slaughtering pigs? Ingrown toenail-“

“Wow, I didn’t think this would actually work so fast!” The person kneeling underneath Kaji exclaimed.

This person’s reaction surprised Kaji. Usually they were met with a casual or aloof look, or feigned respect, but this person actually seemed to be- genuinely delighted?- in their presence.

The person kneeling was dressed like a warrior, with long purple hair in a high ponytail, white robes with dark blue undergarments with a unique sun symbol on it. Hanging on their waist sat a sword, of course one that couldn’t compare to the one summoned just now.

“Uhm, yeah,” Kaji was unsure how to respond just now. They decided to just go with protocol. “What deeds do you wish for me to grant you, mortal?”

“Oh wow this is great!” The stranger stood up and bowed. “Lord Kaji, Sword of Twilight. My name is Kamui Gakupo. I come from a faraway village west of here. As the chief, it is my duty to protect my people. Recently, many beasts have appeared and are terrorizing my people. We’ve tried everything, but they just keep coming back. Out of desperation I have resorted to coming here. I have heard great things about the Sword of Twilight, and I beg of you to sacrifice your time to come with me to help me defend my village. I am but a humble chief. I understand if-“

“YES!”

Kaji didn’t realize how loud they spoke until afterward. They brought their fist up to their mouth and cleared their throat, finally landing onto the ground.

“Sir Kamui. I humbly accept your invitation. Please, lead me to your village and I may assist you in anything you may need.” Kaji’s tone was calm and professional, but in their mind was a small version of themself jumping up and down the walls of their brain, excited to the core. Finally, a decently interesting mission, and with monsters involved too! Their mask disappeared, and they finally revealed their face. Perhaps Gakupo stared at it for a while, the smooth curves of the other’s jaw and their warm eyes, but Kaji wasn’t paying attention.

Gakupo stammered. “Alright. Uhm, I brought my steed with me, but I failed to consider bringing another. If you’d like-“ Kaji knew he was about to offer them to ride his steed. They lifted a hand. “There is no need, walking does not trouble me.”

The two exited the temple to the stocky horse that loitered outside. Gakupo climbed onto it’s back, and Kaji proceeded on foot. Inadvertently, they held onto the horse’s reins, thinking, _Why does this feel so familiar?_ They brushed away the thought, thinking it was foolish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prologue and Chapter 1 finished!  
> I don't have a set update schedule since I can get pretty busy in life, but I will try to update on weekends  
> Also this idea is totally for fun so I don't want to be too serious about it, but if something is not clear I'd be happy to answer. Thank you!


	3. Uninvited Guest

The journey to the west lasted a whole day, and neither Kaji nor Gakupo spoke a word to each other. Kaji was still processing their excitement, thinking about who this warrior was, whether he was worthy, and what dangers they would face. Since they were walking in front of the steed, their chaotic grin was hidden by the one who sat above. Gakupo was fingering the reins as they trekked as if he had many things to ask and say, but since the road was rough, he figured it would be better to speak once they arrived at the village. _I really can’t believe it actually worked!_ he would repeat in his head, a soft smile forming on his face.

As the sun rose, the two followed a stone path that led into a small valley where the village sat. The houses were made of wood, some with a rooves of straw and others with elaborate tiles. This distinguished the use of the buildings, with the straw roofs being agriculture type buildings and the tiled roofs being private homes. Even with the surplus of homes, some areas were barren, as if a building had been there but was snatched away. In the middle of the village was a small reservoir where citizens collected water in buckets or where kids played with paper boats. The whole village was constructed in the shape of a sun, with the reservoir in the center. The thickest road led out to a large building, not so different from the homes except for its size. It was the chief’s home, and Gakupo and Kaji were walking towards it.

Many citizens of the village greeted the two amicably, some eyeing Kaji knowing that they were a foreigner to the mortal realm. These humble, simple people probably had never seen and therefore didn’t know how to act in front of a spirit weapon. Many of them nodded softly to Kaji, and they would nod back, a warm feeling in their chest from finally being treated with respect.

“So what is the name of your village?” They looked over their shoulder at the one mounting the steed.

“Sola, and our symbol is the sun.” Gakupo answered. “We have been here for centuries, but we prefer to keep a low profile. We shall try our best to provide a hospitable experience for you.”

“Try?” Kaji laughed. “I’d say you're outdoing yourself!”

This brought a smile to Gakupo’s face. He got off his steed in front of the chief’s home and pushed the large doors. The steed was taken by someone else, and Kaji followed the other inside. To greet them at the entrance was a woman with melon colored hair, her arms crossed in her sleeves demonstrating that she was not to be messed with.

“Thank you so much for supervising, Gumi. Everything is in relatively good order I see?” Gakupo greeted the woman, who shrugged with a sideways glance.

“If you don’t count Sir Al’s cows getting loose and when midnight strikes, then yes, order was fantastic.” She finally smiled. “So this must be the spirit weapon. Pleasure.” She turned to Kaji, giving them a curt nod. Kaji responded the same way.

“Hm, nice place you got here, only I don’t see any beasts wandering around.” As they spoke, they looked around the room they stood in. It was also structured like a sun, with a table in the center and hallways branching around them. The walls supported shelves where many artifacts sat such as paintings, masks, portraits etc. The walls were painted blue with yellow accents, and small spotlights in the roof made an interesting pattern of light on the ethereal mosaic floor. Kaji dug the side of their foot near a tile, testing whether it would come out or not.

“Thank you, and indeed,” Gakupo responded. “Let us sit, Sword of Twilight. We have much to talk about.” He gestured to the table in the center and pulled out a seat for Kaji. They definitely were not used to this treatment.

The three sat, and Gakupo began. “We’ve witnessed the beasts coming out around midnight. It would start and end with small pests roaming about until then. Two would enter the valley to stomp on our crops and take our homes right out of the ground! We’ve tried subduing them with our swords but nothing seems to penetrate them. They just want to snatch away the homes and leave. We’ve had to accommodate many families into other homes or in here, and it’s been getting out of hand.”

  
“Does this beast happen to have very long legs and arms and a tiny body?” Kaji asked, for this kind of behavior was familiar to them.

  
“Yep, they're kinda stupid looking.” Gumi added.

  
“Ah, those are easy. All you have to do is target its head since all its internal organs are stored in one neat place.” Kaji had fought these kinds of creatures before. They originated as a result of spirit weapons getting stressed to the point that, without proper therapeutic cleansing, their limbs would stretch and their body would shrink.

  
“Easy? Sword of Twilight, I think Gakupo forgot to mention that they are like, 100 feet tall.”

  
Oh? Now that was unusual. The tallest of these kinds of beasts were probably 20 to 30 feet, and thus could still lift a house. But 100 feet? No wonder these poor citizens were so helpless!

  
“Hm, it’s a good thing you have me here then?” Kaji smirked, resting their elbow on the back of the chair.

  
“Indeed." Gakupo responded. "I had planned for us to night watch to catch the beasts. At some point, I'd like to know more about how your powers work. My mother was a spirit weapon wielder, but she passed away before she could teach me anything of them.”

  
Kaji raised their eyebrows. They thought this humble village had never seen a spirit weapon before, but in fact one had stood by the previous chief.

  
“Oh there isn't much to know. I transform into a sword and you swing me around. Who was the spirit weapon your mother wielded, if you don’t might me asking?”

  
Gumi answered. “The Star Saber. He disappeared around the same time the chief died. We prefer to not speak of it.”

  
Kaji had heard of the Star Saber, Kaito, before. It was assumed that he was killed by another powerful wielder, but the stories varied so much that no one knew what truly happened. To have this village be the one he bonded in was impressive.

  
They didn’t press the matter forward anymore, and changed the subject. “I see. Anyway, what are we sitting around for? I’d like to see a demonstration of your power as well, Sir Kamui.”

  
Gakupo chuckled. “Please, call me Gakupo. Our journey back has exhausted me, so please forgive me for retiring so early. When I wake, we shall wait for the beasts. You must be tired as well, Sword of Twilight.”

  
“Spirit weapons don’t need sleep. Maybe I will wake you up once the beast arrives instead.”

  
“Splendid. Gumi, please treat our guest with the utmost hospitality. Now if you’ll excuse me.” With that, Gakupo stood up and nodded and walked into a hallway, presumably his bed chambers.

  
Now that they were alone, Gumi bore her gaze into Kaji, staring blades into them. Kaji stared back, gesturing with their eyebrows for the other to say whatever was on her mind.

  
“I’m gonna be completely honest with you, Sword of Twilight,” she finally began. “You’ve probably heard a lot about Star Saber and how much of a martyr he was, but just know that if he hadn’t shown his lying face here all those years ago, Chief Sachiko wouldn’t have died such a horrible death. As such, I am extremely skeptical of you. Nothing personal though.”

  
This was new. Kaji didn’t think they’d be the subject of such disdain. Something in them wanted to elegantly prove Gumi wrong, but they responded, “I get that a lot. Think what you may if I can’t convince you.” That came out worse than they thought.

  
Gumi scoffed and stood up from her seat. “I’ll be watching you.” Her eyes did not leave the other until she was completely out of the room. Kaji was left alone, pondering about what sort of betrayal occurred with the Star Saber.

  
Meanwhile, Kaji explored Sola and greeted the citizens, many of them asking them numerous questions, especially the kids.

  
“Are you reawwy a sword?”

  
“How many battles have you won?”

  
“Can you help me cut some watermelons?”

  
Questions like the last one made them cringe, but they were fine with helping out with a single swipe. All social aspects of the village were well organized and all communities worked together in harmony. Kaji was beginning to feel very pleased with Gakupo, and admired how even after a tragedy, the village was still in good hands. They smiled, intending to tell him that once he woke.

  
It was late into the evening when Gakupo finally woke up, ready to be on the lookout for beasts with his new companion. He found Kaji teaching kids proper form when wielding a sword, or a long stick in this case. They adjusted one more kid's arms before they went to join Gakupo for their stakeout. Gakupo was crouched on top of a tall watchtower that stood at one end of the village while Kaji sat on the edge swinging their legs.

  
“You know Gakupo, I often see young chiefs struggle with maintaining their villages, but you are something else entirely.”

He breathed through his nose at the compliment. “That means a lot, only I wish I could see what you mean.”

  
“What?” Kaji made a face at that surprising response.

  
“Well-” he paused. “I’ve managed to carelessly let monsters walk in and terrorize everybody, so really I am not deserving of such a compliment.”

  
“Those things are 100 feet tall and you were fighting them with ordinary weapons, and you’ve fought against them for this long! Don’t blame yourself too much.”

  
“Hah, I will try not to.” Gakupo looked over his shoulder at the other with a smile. He then remembered something. “I have forgotten to ask, since I’ve never wielded a spirit weapon, I am not sure if I am worthy of fighting with you. Is there anything important I should know?”

  
Kaji tilted their head in thought, but shrugged. “As I said before, I’m just like any other sword, just more powerful. Often times I can manage beasts on my own, but many people don’t realize that a weapon becomes more powerful when influenced by the emotions of the wielder. So all I can say is be confident and do not show fear, and you’ll see my full potential.” They smirked, perhaps arrogantly, but Kaji knew they were meant for this. Not to be used as some stupid gardening tool, but as a glorious blade, and they couldn’t wait to finally experience this.

  
“Okay, I will try, Sword of Twilight.”

  
The two waited a few more hours on the roof with little to say when finally, heavy footsteps were heard close by. Kaji stood up and looked over the horizon, and saw exactly what they were waiting for. Gakupo stood as well.

  
“That’s it!” He pointed.

  
Approaching them was a beast with a small body as if its torso was squished into a ball, with long legs and arms that dragged behind them. Sparkles flashed in Kaji’s eyes, and they offered their hand to Gakupo.

  
“Let’s pursue them before they get here.” They said. Gakupo nodded affirmatively.

  
The two locked hands, and Kaji’s form glowed and twisted, until what was in Gakupo’s hand was a sheathed, elegantly crafted katana. The sword was heavier than normal, but he could feel the surge of energy with his hand as he grasped the hilt. Unsheathing it, the blade glowed in the moonlight, shimmering as if reflecting water. Gakupo was stunned by the instrument he held, admiring everything about it.

  
“I . . . I have no words.”

  
“I know I am beautiful, why don’t we go and greet our guest?” Kaji’s muffled voice responded from the sword. Gakupo nodded and dove from the watchtower, leaping from tree branch to tree branch. Kaji was impressed with his agility, reveling in this sensation of the hand gripping them so tightly, feeling so familiar.  
They gained up to the beast in a rocky clearing, the gigantic specimen lulling side to side as it trudged towards the village. It hadn’t noticed them yet. Kaji was impressed to see how large this creature was, not like anything else they have fought before. But they weren’t worried.

  
Gakupo looked down to the weapon in his hands and asked, “Are you ready, Sword of Twilight?”

  
Kaji wasted no breath. “I’ve been waiting for this for so long! Come on!”

  
With that, Gakupo sprang into action. He jumped high into the air to slash the beast’s knobby knees, dark powder flowing out of it like fabric. “It actually cut!” The beast roared and fell to that knee, it's tiny eyes looking down at who had injured it. A long arm was about to slap him away when Gakupo dodged, slashing along the forearm with ease. The beast’s roars echoed even louder, muffling out Kaji’s chaotic laughter as they finally felt the flesh separate along his blade. They exclaimed, making Gakupo smile at how much they enjoyed this.

  
The beast slammed the other arm down to try and smash Gakupo, but once the forearm was laid, this gave him the perfect opportunity to jump on top of it and thrust into its bicep. From there he could leap onto the sword and onto its bent knee to target the jumbled mess of a torso it had.

  
Gakupo slashed along its body and leaped over it to land behind, the beast dying after a final roar, sounding uncannily like a human. From there, Kaji transformed back into their human form, and cheered with their fists up.  
“Yes!” They were unsure whether they were still keeping a formal attitude with Gakupo, but they felt like they didn’t have to. “You’re better at this than I thought! What are you doing in some quaint village?” They slapped the others shoulder as they laughed.

  
Gakupo was delighted to see the other excited, as well as to have defeated this beast. But their excitement was soon interrupted as a large heel slammed in between them. Hiding amongst the dense trees, another beast showed up, bending their knees to clumsily sit up. Kaji transformed into a sword once again, completely unbothered.

  
“Come on, give me more!” They cheered.

  
“Usually only two show up, so we should-“

  
Just at that moment, another one appeared! And another! The creatures lifted their shoulders to get up from the ground, surrounding Gakupo and Kaji.

  
“I spoke too soon.” Gakupo commented, his eyebrows tense at the situation they were in. He turned on his heel, searching for an opening.

  
“Slash their knees like you did before!” Kaji commanded. “Don’t think too hard, or else my blade will dull.”

  
“Don’t underestimate me so easily.” Another unfamiliar voice spoke out, laced with intimidation. Gakupo looked up and around and saw that on top of one of the beast’s heads was a figure in white robes. The skin on the left half of their face was covered in burn scars. Hair as red as blood bounced in the wind, and pale skin reflected in the moonlight.

  
Gakupo tensed his brows, unsure of who this person was. Kaji’s reflection appeared in the blade of the sword, their eyes wide. Their breathing hitched as they finally breathed out heavily, “Fukase . . .”

  
“Who is this?” Gakupo asked, still vigilant of what the creatures surrounding them would do.

  
“You don’t know who I am?" The figure asked as if they didn't expect otherwise. "I don’t blame you, I realize I have become quite unpopular these last hundred years, only I am surprised you haven’t heard of me in legend. Then again, where you come from is so quaint you probably don’t know anything outside your little bubble.” Their voice was mocking, as if they weren’t afraid of scratching away at someone’s skin to find all their flaws and plaster them on their face.

  
“Are you controlling these beasts? Why?”

  
“Why not? Don’t think I haven’t forgotten what your mother did to me, Kamui Gakupo. It’s only natural I do the same to her only child.” The smile on Fukase’s face demonstrated innocence, but in the current context it was terrifying. “Do me a favor, and stay put, and I'll take you to see her.”

  
Kaji yelled from the blade. “Stop talking, you worm! Just get them, Gakupo!”

  
Gakupo was in a temporary trance as he heard Fukase speak, much confusion in his head. Kaji’s voice woke him up, and he breathed in to focus back onto the task at hand. But as he was about to strike, it was too late. All beasts slammed their arms down in a criss cross manner, locking the two in one place. He leaped on top of their forearms to slash them, but when one beast was in danger, another would defend it. The beast Fukase was on top of would have some sort of extra protection around it which made it hard to pierce, and what made it more difficult is that Fukase would leap from top to top. It became a game of dodging limbs for Gakupo, and whenever he was close to the top of a beast’s head, Fukase would kick him down and evade him in every way. Gakupo was able to slice off one of their tiny hands, but it only angered the other two. Fukase didn’t seemed too worried, as if they had more beasts hidden away at this very moment. At this standstill, Kaji groaned.

  
“Just throw me!”

  
“What-“

  
“At its body. Do it!”

  
At the command, Gakupo flung the sword towards one of the beast’s bodies that Fukase stood above, the blade wobbling with uncertainty. As it pierced the center, Kaji transformed back into a human, the sphere exploding in a ray of light. From there they leaped onto the other adjacent beast, using their arm now as a blade to pierce the very top. At the last beast, Kaji lunged their arm towards Fukase’s chest, but it was no use. They were too quick, and they kicked the other down with ease, hands crossed behind their back.

  
Gakupo moved away from this demonstration, fingering his thumb and index finger while clutching his injured shoulder, mentally chastising himself for losing his focus for a moment. Kaji landed in front of Gakupo, wobbling as they regained their balance.

  
“Now that you’ve made my job harder, I must retreat.” Fukase said, speaking as if they broke no sweat. “But the next time I come back, know that your entire village will be single handedly uprooted from the ground.” They snapped their fingers, and they and injured beast disappeared into a swirl of dark shadows.

  
“Next time you come back I’ll slice you to a million pieces!” Kaji cursed at them, panting from the exertion. They looked back at Gakupo, who was speechless.

  
“What just happened?” He asked, rubbing his shoulder that was particularly bruised from the fight. “They were like lightning, but they don’t look like a spirit weapon to me. If I had just focused . . .” He lost his words.

  
“It’s a long story, I can explain once we get back.” Kaji sighed. “I didn’t think he’d be back this early.” They went over to pat the other’s shoulder, accidentally hurting the other. “Ah, sorry. But Gakupo, Fukase isn’t just a regular rogue. For a mortal, you did pretty good against him. I would say the worst is over.”

  
Gakupo hid his lips and nodded, mentally chastising himself for getting lost in the enemy’s words. The duo walked back to the village silently. It was late into the night, so all the lights inside the houses were off, but the lanterns glowed softly to lead the way. As soon as they opened the door to the chief’s home, several servants and citizens in the home rushed to him in worry.

  
“Gakupo! We saw everything from here, are you okay?”

  
“Come, I will heal your wound. It’s very bad!”

  
“We’ve cooked you a warm vegetable soup!”

  
Gakupo was a little overwhelmed by this kindness, but he wouldn’t expect anything less from his village. Kaji was left on the sidelines, probably with the assumption that they were invincible and could not be hurt, and they were in fact unscathed, but they kinda wished they received similar treatment. The two were led to the infirmary and sat on a mat amongst a row of many. A nurse added ointment to Gakupo’s bruise, and another woman brought a small folding table to eat his soup. She turned to Kaji, who was watching Gakupo getting treated. His muscular arm was out of his sleeve, and Kaji figured they could spare a quick look.

  
“Sword of Twilight, I do not know if your kind eat, but I prepared a bowl for you. Please accept it.”

  
Kaji returned to reality and their eyes lit up and they took the bowl with a grin. “We don’t, but I still enjoy it as a pleasure.”

  
The woman was delighted that they accepted her bowl, and left with a nod and a skip in her step.

  
Gakupo’s arm was wrapped in bandages, and after double checking his condition, the nurse stood up to leave, instructing him to not move and rest for a while, her tone expressing disappointment with how he got hurt this way.

  
He sighed, refusing to lay on the mat as if doing so would embarrass him. He stirred the soup they brought him, while Kaji sat beside him taking it in small sips. There was an awkward silence, but Kaji broke it.

  
“Your citizens really know how to treat a spirit weapon. I must say I am glad you dragged me out here.” They glanced at Gakupo, who nodded as he absentmindedly played with his food. “Is there anything wrong?”

  
“Hm? Oh, nothing is wrong. I would like to know more about this ‘Fukase’ character, actually.”

  
“Ah yes, I almost forgot.”

  
Kaji explained how Miriam, the Whistle of Woe, had many followers, and how Fukase was one of her favorites. Some say she gave birth to them, or they were found in a basket on her doorstep, or she snatched them away from their original family. In whatever way they were captured, all versions of the story described how Fukase was trained by Miriam to become her successor. They say she treated them like her own son, an heir to continue draining the world of impurities for generations to come. They became a devious warrior, and possessed many corrupted weapons. Corrupted weapons are when beasts transform, since beasts were once normal spirit weapons. Corrupted weapons have no agency, and influencing them to do your bidding was easy.

  
When Miriam was defeated, Fukase was left to run her organization on their own. This set the cannons towards them, and everyone knew that defeating them would put this conflict behind once and for all. On another one of their excursions, they were finally killed by no one other than the Sword of Twilight, Kaji.

  
“I have a particular grudge against him, because he is the reason I became a spirit weapon. I made a desperate wish to protect the one I love, but once that wasn’t fulfilled, I made another wish to enact revenge. From there I killed him, and now here I am.”

  
Gakupo’s expression changed as he heard this from Kaji. He was intently listening, finally getting a sip from his soup, but now he tensed his eyebrows, feeling sorrow for Kaji.

  
“Anyway, that was a long time ago. He’s resting in peace. Anyway. The thing about Fukase is that after he dies, he still somehow remembers his past life, and when he comes back in a suitable form, he will cause havoc. It’s been happening for generations. Sometimes us spirit weapons find out what being he has reincarnated to, but sometimes it slips through our fingers. Unfortunately, we’ve failed to find him before he reached adulthood, so now he is back. And with those new beasts he has crawling around, one can only imagine what he has planned.”

  
Kaji smacked their lips as they continued with the soup, their story coming to a close. They tried to keep their face from bending too much at the bitterness, but it was clear that this was not what they liked.

  
Gakupo noticed their distaste and chuckled. “I see. So this person has been on your tail for quite some time. It seems the only answer is to stop the problem at the source, but even that doesn’t stop them. Uhm, Sword of Twilight, I am changing the subject, but is the soup not to your liking?”

  
“Oh no, it’s fine.” They lied, but then submitted. “You wouldn’t happen to have any spices though, would you?”

  
“It’s not spice season, but I’d be happy to give you some from the market down south.”

  
“Haha you don’t need to trouble yourself with a person who doesn’t even need food.”

  
Even though Kaji said that, Gakupo was still planning on getting them spices anyway. He wanted to show his gratitude for helping him tonight. But that would have to be after they deal with this business with Fukase.

  
Kaji left the soup half full and continued, “I will talk with the council in the spirit realm about what we just witnessed. From then on we can make a plan.”  
“I see. I suppose you won’t be needing me anymore.” The way Gakupo said that could be interpreted as relief, but it seemed as if he was hopeless for any other option. He turned away, as if looking at Kaji would make him feel worse. But Kaji felt otherwise. They didn’t want to go back to being a garden tool again. They wanted to continue this adventure with Gakupo. Perhaps this was selfish, but it’s all they ever wanted.

  
“You don’t have to worry, I’ll come back once we’ve reached a verdict, and who knows maybe you and I could storm into that goblin’s lair and slay him ourselves.

  
Gakupo laughed. “I don't know about that.”

  
“Well, I do know you are probably wrong.” Kaji wasn’t sure what to make of this insecurity they saw in Gakupo. They were about to say something else when Gakupo lifted his bowl up to drink the soup, lying down on the mat with a sigh.

  
“It’s time to sleep.” Gakupo closed his eyes and rested his hands on his belly. For a moment Kaji felt an unease in their mind, as if seeing the village chief lie like this awakened something in them. They were unsure what to make of it, and just resorted to returning to the spirit realm.

  
They stretched their arms up with a groan. “Good night then. I’ll be back in no time.” They gave one last smile to Gakupo, even if he wasn’t looking, and teleported back to the spirit realm.

  
Kaji was sitting on the steps of the gazebo, but this was no time to dawdle. They had to bring the council together to meet about the damned soul that kept on coming back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure why this was so difficult to write. Maybe I was trying to make it perfect but at some point I had to finish hehe  
> Again this is for fun but if anyone has any questions or critiques I would be happy to answer!  
> Updates usually on the weekends <3


	4. Stepping in Sangra

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made a doodle of how I imagine Leon and Lola to look like according to this Au! Their outfits are based on Ancient Egyptian and Jamaican clothes respectively ^^

As soon as Kaji mentioned Fukase, the council erupted with questions.

The meeting took place in a polygonal room with many spirit weapons sitting on tall platforms, the ground floor invisible with all the fog. Some platforms were taller than others indicating the seniority of each weapon. In the center was the shortest platform where one would stand and make some sort of statement. Right now Kaji was standing in the center amidst all this chatter as Lola attempted to silence them.

“All of you! Let them speak. You think they’re gonna answer you when you’re all this loud?” The hall immediately became quiet. She scoffed. “Honestly. Continue with your testimony, Sword of Twilight Kaji.”

“Thank you, Twin Gauntlet Lola.” They nodded their head and continued. They summarized how Gakupo’s village was being terrorized by those stretched beasts, how they fought them, and how Fukase suddenly appeared and threatened them. They also added how the beasts were mutated abnormally to what they usually looked like, and how Fukase gained enough power to even evade a spirit weapon. They were a mortal, no doubt, considering how much they died and reincarnated, but something was different about them now.

Leon sat beside Lola and stroked his chin. He looked at his sister who looked back at him, both perplexed by the same thing.

“It’s a shame we haven’t been able to catch them in time before they reached adulthood.” Leon spoke. “However, even if we do kill them this time, the cycle will just continue.”

“If they keep getting reincarnated, it is possible they have control over their own soul, and thus can jump from body to body, or they have a spirit weapon accomplice with the ability to awaken reincarnations.” Lola added. Several spirit weapons did have this unique ability, Kaji included.

“Wait, so does that mean there is a traitor among us?” Another spirit weapon, Luo Tianyi, asked.

“It is very likely. Also, considering that many spirit weapons have been disappearing these past hundred years, we can also assume Fukase has something to do with it.” Leon responded.

Kaji then remembered about Star Saber Kaito, and how, as far as the spirit realm knew, he never returned after bonding with Sachiko, which made the realm suspicious of what the chief did to him. But it could be possible his and her fate had to do with Fukase as well.

“Indeed,” Lola added. “Back to their ability to reincarnate, we will not only have to destroy their body, but also destroy their soul once and for all, as well as find out who was giving Fukase their past memories. Kaji, you not only have the ability to harm physical bodies, but souls as well, is that correct?”

This was true, Kaji nodded. The only reason Fukase’s soul didn’t dissipate 800 years ago was simply because Kaji was a newly formed spirit weapon, and fueled by so much rage and desperation, they were not well versed in how their powers worked. 

_If only I had known._ They thought, kind of regretting not doing it many years ago. But there was no time to regret, only move forward.

“Of course if you doubt yourself we could always send a more practical weapon to find them. A whip or a chain to snag their soul.” Leon nodded at her assessment, but Kaji didn’t want that. They rose their voice and fell to their knees pleading.

“Twin Gauntlets Leon and Lola, please forgive me for disagreeing with you, but I have a score to settle with Fukase. I understand my abilities better than before and I guarantee you that I will dissipate his soul for eternity. And if it comes to it, I will smite the spirit weapons responsible for this. I beg of you to let me take on this mission. I have also encountered a very skilled warrior who can aid me in this objective. Please consider my proposal before you make a final decision.”

Several spirit weapons glanced at their peers at such a bold move. Few dared to disagree with Leon and Lola, much less speak above them. They wondered what would happen now that Kaji already spoke, a ball of sweat falling from their forehead.

“Oh Kaji there is no need to beg, your request is granted.” Leon waved his hand as if the formality wasn’t necessary. To the Gauntlets, it wasn’t necessary to be so formal in front of the them, but most spirit weapons were and advised others to be anyway due to how high the two ranked.

“We will consider your conditions and your partner’s after the meeting. I am confident in your abilities.” Lola responded to Kaji with a warm smile, then turned to address the whole council. “A thorough investigation will be held to find whoever is the mole among us. Everyone will convene in the Great Hall, no exceptions. Those who are cleared will be assigned posts to look out for Fukase. Meeting adjourned.” The two clapped their hands.

. . .

Gakupo finally sat up with a groan, feeling sore all over his body. He woke up on the mat in the infirmary with his hair in knots from tossing and turning and Gumi was standing over him with a plate of food. “Your shoulder should be healed now. Go clean yourself up. You stink.” She set the plate down on a small folding table beside him and hurried to leave, when Gakupo spoke up,

“Wait, Gumi, I’ve barely said good morning.” He laughed. “Can you give me a status report on the village?”

“Ah yes, sorry. Surprisingly, like yesterday, there haven’t been any beast attacks. Must’ve scared them away, so everything has been very peaceful. The citizens are also rebuilding their homes. Oh yeah, and that spirit weapon came by yesterday. They said something about a mission or whatever. I sent them away since you were still healing.”

Gakupo sighed as he heard how Gumi treated Kaji. Even though she didn’t describe it in detail, he knew about her attitude towards spirit weapons. He couldn’t blame her, but he didn’t want this conflict between them. “I see. Next time, please provide them with proper hospitality when they visit. You needn’t be so suspicious.” Gakupo was beginning to eat his food when Gumi’s face twisted into a grimace.

“Look at how we complement each other. You trust too easily while I trust none. If anything I am saving you the trouble of betrayal.”

“I understand what you mean, but I believe this spirit weapon is different. I understand why you can’t trust them, but don’t make that the reason you are unkind to them.”

“Hmph, I’m surprised _you_ are so trusting of them.”

“I have no reason to not trust them. Gumi, I’d prefer if we didn’t talk about this again.” While Gumi was suspicious of Star Saber and thus distrusted all spirit weapons, Gakupo was more forgiving. He didn’t think it was Star Saber’s doing, having his mother deteriorate like mist like that. He understood their relationship to be mutualistic and peaceful. He could never imagine Star Saber doing something that horrible to her. Gakupo and Gumi had argued about this before, but there was no point in changing the other’s mind.

Gumi dropped the subject, twisting her foot into the floor with nothing productive to say. “Your bath is already ready. Your _spirit weapon_ has been walking about the village messing around these days. I’ll send someone to fetch them.” With that, Gumi left the room, and Gakupo was left there with some bland breakfast, his shoulder better than before yet with no motivation to lift his chopsticks.

In about half an hour, Gakupo was all cleaned and dressed up and ready to receive Kaji, who was currently sitting by the table in the center of the house, sitting backwards on the chair with their arms over the top. They had been waiting here for a while, but they seemed unbothered. In their hands they were examining a small trinket, a small bell with intricate designs. It chimed several times when they turned it around to observe it until they finally noticed Gakupo standing there. Their face lit up and he chuckled.

“I see you are enjoying one of many artifacts we have. It’s just a children’s toy.”

“Hmm, looks pretty intricate for a kid’s toy. Did you play with this?”

Gakupo walked over to sit at the table with Kaji. “Not much, I remember I preferred stuffed animals if anything. Sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Oh I don’t mind. How’s your shoulder?”

“It’s better. It shouldn’t intervene with any mission I imagine you'd like to propose.” Gakupo emphasized the word mission, since that was what Gumi mentioned.

“Ah, I almost forgot my purpose here.” Kaji sat properly in the chair and placed the bell on the table and began to explain.

“So I spoke to the council and we’ve come up with a deal; you and I will investigate where Fukase’s lair is, find him, and slay him on the very ground he stands. Pretty simple right?” They were very enthusiastic with their plan, a wide grin on their face as they moved their hands around to describe the investigating, finding, and slaying.  
“To make our job easier, I have a lead. We need to go to Sangra town north of here. That is supposedly where Fukase was found by Miriam. Surely that town is boasting with legends and stories of him. It’s a good place to start.”

Gakupo nodded his head at their plan, but something still worried him.

“I see. I am incredibly touched by you including me in your adventure, Sword of Twilight, but I cannot leave my village only in the hands of Gumi for what I imagine to be a long time. Plus, even though we haven’t seen any of Fukase’s beasts, who knows when they will return.”

“I was just about to mention that. The council has spirit weapons stationed all over the land to keep an eye out for him, so I proposed that they set up a barrier around your village and to have another spirit weapon protect it. She is a whip, so she’d be great for capturing anyone that comes to mess around.”

“I see. But forgive me for asking, why must you invite me to go after them? I understand your grudge against them, but why include me? You must know I am a busy man.” Gakupo couldn’t understand why he was so valued by Kaji. He was a simple chieftain, not a royal. He figured the problem in his village was just a pest problem, but if he had known it was bigger than that, he wouldn’t have involved himself.

Kaji rose their eyebrows at such a question. “I mean, why not? You wield me pretty well, better than most. And two versus one gives us a better chance. Do you just not want to go with me?” They spoke the last sentence with a pout, feigning sadness.

Gakupo wasn’t sure how to respond to Kaji’s tease. “I didn’t mean that.”

“Then let me invite you. Don’t worry so much.” Kaji winked at him, sitting up from the chair as everything was settled.

“Why wait any longer?” They offered a hand to Gakupo to help him stand up and when he held it, Kaji’s hand lingered there for a moment. A swordman’s hands were usually rough and strong, but Gakupo’s were light and thin. Perhaps that was what helped him make such agile and swift moves with a sword. But anyways Kaji was lingering there for too long, so they let go of his hand swiftly.

Gakupo sighed. “You have interesting ways of working. Lead the way, Sword of Twilight.” Gakupo figured he just ought to trust Kaji. Clearly they saw something in Gakupo that he didn’t see in himself, and he was curious to know what it was. Maybe accompanying him would reveal to him what that was. Plus he was content that his village was in good hands.

“You know, _Sword of Twilight_ is so formal and long. Just call me Kaji.”

“Okay, Kaji.” Gakupo smiled as he was finally permitted to use the other’s true name. And from there, the two exited the chief’s home.

At the entrance of the village was another spirit weapon, Miku, drawing protection symbols on the pillars that welcomed visitors. Gumi was instructed to let her do what she needed to do and that everything would be under control. She accepted with a huff. As they passed by, Miku greeted Kaji and Gakupo cheerfully.

“I just got here ten minutes ago and already I love your cute little village! If anything happens, I will contact you immediately. Good luck on your journey you two!”

“Thank you, Miku.” Kaji responded with a nod. Gakupo nodded politely as well, and off they went north.

They decided to go on foot since a steed would give them an extra burden. The Sangra village was only 20 miles away, which to each of them was just a casual stroll. They were passing through a peaceful forest silently, Kaji thinking deeply about what to say to Gakupo. To break the silence they began,

“It’s very noble to see how much you care about your village. But think about it; _if_ we kill Fukase, and we will, then any future beast problems are solved. I can’t think of anyone else who’d be better for this job.”

“That makes sense. Only I didn’t think a simple pest problem would become this elaborate.”

“Then why did you summon me specifically?”

“Well uhm, to be honest I was quite desperate. Plus I have heard good things about you.”

“Then why not continue wielding me? If anything we could become longtime partners, no need to be so humble.” Kaji imagined how nice that would sound, a lifetime with such a talented warrior. Of course they’d outlive him, but they would cherish those moments forever.

“It’s not that I am humble, I just do not want to disappoint you.” Gakupo was feeling bashful at all this praise and being included. It felt nice to be given this attention.

“Disappoint me? I am 800-something years old, many things have disappointed me in the past, but just know that you haven’t.”

“Well, I don’t exactly mean disappoint. I have just admired spirit weapons for so long that I imagine you would want to partner up with someone worthy enough.”

“I do get that. I’ve been wielded by many a fool over the decades. But don’t worry, I don’t count you as that kind of person.”

Gakupo smiled at that remark, but even though he knew that comment was good natured, he couldn’t help but not believe it. But he wouldn’t say anything else, and just nodded. “I appreciate it.”

Kaji stretched their arms up with a laugh. They found this chief’s humble behavior refreshing after being around arrogant people who would ask them for pointless things.

“Where’d you learn to wield a sword, by the way? Was it by your mother?” Kaji was pleased the two could converse casually now. But this question seemed difficult for Gakupo to answer.

“I am mostly self-taught. I learned mostly from observing my mother.”

“Did your father teach you anything?” The moment that question left their lips, Kaji realized how insensitive that might have sounded. Gakupo just shook his head as if he didn’t want to elaborate.

“From just observation, I’m surprised you know so much. I knew soldiers that trained all their lives that tossed me from swinging too hard.” They laughed as they remembered a certain time that happened.

Gakupo was happy to know that his swordsmanship was somewhat practical. “How many battles have you been in?”

“Tons. I’ve lost count.”

The answer didn’t surprise Gakupo, but he was now thinking about how many lives Kaji must have taken. It couldn’t have been easy, but the thought bothered him.

“You don’t have to answer, but you mentioned you became a spirit weapon after wanting to protect your loved one. How exactly did that happen?”

Kaji paused for a moment. Those memories were so old that they were becoming withered. “It’s been so long. I don’t remember much from my old life, but the strongest feeling I remember before I transformed was just desperation for revenge. I became unhinged after that, but I have long since gotten over that.” Kaji thought against what they said. “But knowing that Fukase is still out there is bringing back some nasty feelings.”

Gakupo felt a deep pity for Kaji, despite them saying they were over it. One more question: “What was their name?”

Kaji sighed. “Surprisingly, I don’t remember. But maybe it’s better that way so I can continue moving forward and not think about it too much.”

Gakupo nodded affirmatively. The rest of their walk was quiet what with the occasional “watch your step” and “look at that!” until they finally arrived at the town Sangra. It was incredibly large, with towering buildings and a long entrance tunnel of pillars. People walked in and out with trade goods, conversing high and low. The general color scheme of the town was red with black, dotted with decorations of gold. It was hard for one to appreciate the beauty of this town with all the people, especially since Kaji covered their face with a hood and pulled Gakupo into a less crowded alleyway.

“Why are we hiding?” Gakupo asked, looking out at the busy street.

“Let’s just say spirit weapons get a lot of attention here. I don’t really want to answer too many questions.” They smiled, peeking up at the other through their hood.

“I see. Well, where should we search first?”

As if to answer their call, a set of screams was heard down the street. There was also the sounds of hissing and paper folding, and Kaji grinned as he imagined what it could be.

“Let’s check it out!” They cried. Gakupo nodded as they offered their hand, transforming into a sheathed sword.

Gakupo ran from the alley and saw that the streets had been mostly cleared. Slithering in the center was a giant snake, but it wasn’t an ordinary snake. It was headless and had a flat body and was textured like burnt paper. It was many feet long and from its body, smaller snakes of paper ripped out of it to attack. In the center of where its “throat” would be was a red pendant, which indicated that the corrupted spirit weapon was somebody familiar.

“Merli? What happened to you?” Kaji spoke from the blade. They thought Merli bonded with someone long ago, but to know that she may have disappeared and turned into this was surprising.

The creature crinkled as it withered uncomfortably and lunged forward to attack. As Gakupo unsheathed the blade to block, a figure jumped in front of them to deter and shove the beast away. It was another warrior, her blonde hair bouncing in the wind as she landed in front of them. In her hand was a bladed fan, and it left a significant scratch on the creature. From the sword Kaji shouted,

“Thanks, one!”

“Haha, well if it isn’t two.” The bladed fan spoke, it was Kazumi. Their reflection showed in the blades, grinning at seeing their brother again. “What brings you here?”

“Just passing by.” Kaji responded casually as if there wasn’t a writhing creature in front of them.

Gakupo looked in between his own weapon and the other’s at the sudden familiarity. The one holding the fan turned her head to look at the two, her face stern. It was SeeU. “Well? What are you standing around for?”

So many new faces, Gakupo broke out of his thoughts and shook his head. He cleared his throat. “Sorry, ma’am. We’ve come to help.”

“It’s been a while since we battled together.” Kazumi remarked as numerous small strips of paper were thrown at them. Working together the two warriors sliced the weak minions into many pieces, angering their mother who slithered around them, intending to constrict them. Gakupo and SeeU were both very skilled at dodging and leaping, and were able to evade the beast for the most part. Although this beast was made of paper, with every cut it became harder to slice it. It would keep folding into itself, which made the layers thicker and harder to peel.

At one point, Kaji’s blade was wrapped around by the creature and was constricted to the point that blood was let. A grunt was heard. At seeing the blood, Gakupo tried to desperately pull the creature off them, but to a mortal’s hands, the paper was like leather. He received a mild rope burn and SeeU came to rescue them, slicing the creature off Kaji. A muffled groan sounded from the bloodied blade.

“Keep going! Don’t worry about me.”

Gakupo continued fighting with the sheath instead, chastising himself for not being more careful with Kaji. After a few more minutes of slashing and ripping, the creature eventually became a small paper square, hopping up and down on the floor with the pendant attached to it. The warriors sighed with exhaustion now that this ordeal was finished, their spirit weapons returning to their original forms. Kaji had a long diagonal slice from their outer thigh to the back of their calf, blood seeping through their robes, but they tried not to seem bothered by it.

Gakupo looked at the other with worry. “Kaji, let’s get you treated. That looks terribly painful!”

Before Kaji was about to brush off his worry, Kazumi spoke, “Like hell he’ll admit he’s hurt. He could lose his head and say, ‘nah I’ll just attach it myself.’” At the moment, SeeU was securing the gem of the beast in a small pouch, holding back laughter from what Kazumi said.

Kaji stuck their tongue out at their sister. They had already had this conversation before. They turned to Gakupo with a smile. “Really, it’s just a scratch. In any case, medical herbs don’t work on spirit weapons, and I happen to not have any spirit herbs on me.”

At that moment, Kazumi tossed their brother a pouch of herbs, the leaves glowing through the fabric. It knocked their head. “Take this at least, two.”

Kaji accepted it, a lopsided expression on their face. Gakupo had seen this sort of attitude before, someone who tried to feign strength despite being in pain.

“Let us find a place to heal you. At least lean on me while you walk.” He opened his arms out for the other.

“If you insist.” Kaji shrugged, wrapping a lazy arm around Gakupo’s shoulders. It was pointless to argue for something so trivial, plus they’d much rather be treated by anyone other than Kazumi. They had rough hands. Gakupo was about a head taller than Kaji, which made them feel comfy and safe.

Kazumi spoke as they held the pouch with the gem, “I will take Merli’s corrupted spirit to the spirit realm and try to cleanse her and perhaps interrogate her. Poor thing.” They turned to SeeU. “Don’t miss me too much while I’m gone.”

The serious face on the other woman’s face was wiped away from that remark. She looked away bashfully. “I won’t.” She turned to Gakupo and Kaji, her serious face returning. “I will be on my way. Thank you for your help.” She lowered her head at them and went on her way, Kazumi at the same time disappearing in a twist of light and form. The two were left now to find a place to heal Kaji’s wound, and investigate this town further.

“See you later, one.” Kaji said as they hobbled on one leg while Gakupo led them into a small inn, boasting with conversation that surely held some valuable information. As the two walked in to book a room, Gakupo suddenly asked,

“You and that other weapon seemed familiar with each other.”

“Oh, that is my sister Kazumi.”

“Oh, why do you call each other _one_ and _two_?”

Kaji laughed. “We are twins and she was technically born before me, so we’ve always called each other _one_ and _two_ for the longest time.”

Gakupo chuckled at that. “You two seem close.”

“Yeah, ahah I guess you could say that. We only got close after we both became spirit weapons.”

That was an interesting remark. Gakupo inquired, “Why is that?”

“From what I remember, she trained for the longest time to become a warrior while I just worked on the farm, I think, so we spent a lot of time separate from each other. But once I became a spirit weapon, she helped guide me on how it all worked. I guess after we were on the same page did we become close.”

“I see. That’s always a good thing.” It warmed Gakupo’s heart to know more of Kaji’s family and life. They arrived at the simple, single bed room, and Gakupo helped Kaji sit on the mattress.

“So, how does this work?”

“I got it covered.” Kaji bent their wounded leg and lifted their robes to look at the gash. It was incredibly deep, the skin flaying and part of their muscles showing underneath. They winced at the sight and as if guessing what they were about to ask for, Gakupo quickly brought over a damp rag to clean the wound. He dabbed at the wound and Kaji laughed.

“Really, I got it covered.” They tried to grab the rag to do it themselves but Gakupo didn’t allow them.

“Please Kaji, it’s the least I can do after handling you so recklessly.”

“Pfft, you didn’t do anything wrong. That beast was brutal. I should expect to get hurt like this from time to time.”

“I understand, but as a wielder of a spirit weapon, I should demonstrate this form of respect to you.”

“Pssh _, demonstrate_ ,” Kaji muttered. They weren’t used to this treatment, but they decided to surrender and give Gakupo the glowing herbs to place on their wound. Something was familiar about how he responded to him, and the feeling turned their guts and warmed their heart.

Kaji tried holding back winces as the cut stung and as it was fully cleaned and the herbs were applied, Gakupo stood up to find some gauze to wrap around their leg. As they sat there like a baby, Kaji asked,

“How about you and Gumi? Are you two siblings?”

Gakupo came over with the gauze and wrapped it snug around their leg with gentle movements. He smiled, content seeing the other permit him to treat them. “No, she is technically a cousin. My mother’s sister was taken in by our family when she was very young, so she really admired my mother. Even so we are as close as siblings.”

“Really? That’s interesting. She isn’t like you at all. She basically yelled at me when I came to check up on you. Not that I mind, it’s a little funny actually.”

“Ah I see, the thing is she doesn’t like spirit weapons very much. She has always been suspicious of Star Saber Kaito, but please don’t take it personally. It’s just a matter of circumstance.”

“I see. Don’t worry, I don’t.” Kaji thought about how interesting it was that Gumi distrusted spirit weapons because of Kaito, and the spirit realm was suspicious of Sachiko because of what happened to Kaito. Thankfully the realm didn’t take any desperate measures that would’ve destroyed their relationship with humans.

Once Kaji was all healed, they said, “Thank you. Now I don’t need to lean on you anymore.”

Gakupo chuckled. “You may if you’d like to.”

Now the two had to think about their next course of action. Kaji was able to stand with a little wobble and support from Gakupo’s arm.

“Since we’re basically in Fukase’s hotspot, how about we eavesdrop the restaurant? Plus you haven’t eaten since this morning.”

Indeed Gakupo was hungry, and the idea of sitting and calming down with Kaji sounded nice. They descended the stairs and found somewhere to sit, Kaji pulling up their hood up again to not attract unwanted attention. Even when someone came to wait on them, Kaji tried to turn their face away.

“I’m not gonna order anything. Enjoy yourself.”

“Are you sure?” Gakupo inquired. It felt rude to be the only one eating while the other had nothing on their plate. Kaji nodded, waving their hand since they didn’t mind at all. As they waited for the food to come, a certain conversation entered their ears. Some older men and women were conversing in a nearby table.

“So what’s the whole deal with the beasts? Weren’t those eradicated years ago?”

“Yeah, but they just started coming back a few months ago. Just now there was a fight outside!”

“Yeah I saw it! It was pretty awesome.”

“Really? But where did it come from? I thought the whole Whistle of Woe business was taken care of.”

“Apparently she had many disciples who still want to continue her legacy. Her most famous one Fukase, was supposedly born here.DId you not know about that?”

“You never mentioned it, plus I don’t really pay attention to news like that.”

“But didn’t they die years ago?”

“Yes, but rumor has it they are back for revenge. Supposedly the child was born here and the Whistle of Woe took them as her disciple, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she taught them some nasty trick to resurrect.”

“But why would they come back? Wasn’t that business finished hundreds of years ago?”

"Yeah why not just let bygones be bygones?"

“I dunno, but you should know that bad guys like that don’t need a reason to start trouble. They just wanna mess everything up for fun.”

“It’s like they have some sort of creed to be troublesome.”

“Was the child taken from their home or were they abandoned?”

“No one really knows. I heard the child was taken into Moho forest and left there for dead before Miriam found them.”

“I've been there. Can hardly stand with all the swamp. Seems like a perfect place for an evil witch’s lair.”

“It’s south, right?”

“Yeah, but don’t even think of going there. Not only are there tons of leeches and parasites, there are lots of beasts that roam around there. That’s how I got this hook for a hand.”

“Whoa! What’s the story?”

“Well, let me start from the beginning.”

Gakupo and Kaji looked at each other as the conversation ended and turned to a different topic.

“I guess that’s our next destination.” They remarked and the other nodded.

“Moho Forest.”

A server came by and handed Gakupo his plate of food as well as appetizers. She had a questioning look as Kaji moved away from her, looking like a hermit afraid of the sun. Gakupo tilted his head to try and look at Kaji from underneath the hood.

“You needn’t worry about hiding so much. We are in a corner seat, plus I won’t let any unwanted visitors bother you.”

Kaji laughed, relaxing their stance a little. “I highly appreciate that. Would hate to be asked to chop some lumber.”

Gakupo tensed his eyebrows at that very specific example. “What do you mean by that?”

“It's kind of a long story. You see, not many people around here respect spirit weapons at all. Maybe they were worshipped back then but now we are treated like dispensable tools for anyone to use.” Kaji laughed.

“Before you summoned me, I was constantly called to do menial jobs like cutting grass or chopping down trees. I was even asked to pop somebody’s pimples and how could I refuse when one wrong word would pit the entire human race against me? I couldn’t wait for someone to ask me for a real job to do, to get some action with beasts or something.” They punched their fists into the air to emphasize the ‘action.’

“You saved me really, plus I’d be finishing this business with Fukase so it all works out.”

“I had no idea you were treated as such. I’ve always regarded spirit weapons as beings deserving immense respect. People who think otherwise are so shameful!”

“Yeah, I almost got used to it though, after 400 years.”

“400 years?!” Gakupo couldn’t imagine such treatment for four lifetimes. As a way to demonstrate solidarity, he took a small plate and placed some of his spicy beef on top with extra sauce, handing over to Kaji.

They melted at the gesture, taking the plate. “You know spirit weapons don’t need food or anything, right?”

“But you enjoy it, don’t you? Need I insist on you again?”

“I’ll let _this_ demonstration slide.” Kaji laughed, taking a bite from their food. They still hadn’t processed the situation they were in: fighting beasts, searching for Fukase, a great warrior by their side, and eating spicy beef steak with him. They felt reflective with everything that was happening, thoughts of déjà vu serializing that made them want to stay in this moment forever. They experienced a moment like this before a very long time ago, but there were no images coming to mind. There was only an influx of feelings, leaving them so engrossed in these thoughts that they forgot to take another bite, idly playing with their food.

Gakupo was content to know about Kaji’s need to be noble and seeking respect. He sought to treat them the best he could. He glanced up at Kaji who seemed to be deep in thought. Their eyes met and they smiled at each other.

“What? Thinking of giving me some more of your food?” Kaji teased.

“If you ask, you shall receive.”

The two lingered longer in the restaurant, picking up conversations that were similar to the one before, but no new information appeared. The two shared a comfortable silence as they drank together, the moon rising ever so slightly as they listened around.

They were going to venture to a swampy forest tomorrow, so Kaji left Gakupo to sleep in the room.

Getting into the sheets, Gakupo spoke up, “I only booked one bed since I figured you didn’t need sleep, but there is a little bit of room if you so desire.”

Kaji chuckled, their cheeks warming at the offer. “There is no need. I have some things to take care of in the spirit realm.“ Honestly at this point they just needed a moment to think before they made any rash decisions. Gakupo was content with the boundaries they placed, completely dedicated to satisfying Kaji.

"Well, good night, Sword of Twilight Kaji." He said finally.

Before Kaji transported to the spirit realm, they took one last look at the other’s sleeping face, his long gorgeous hair splayed behind him like a peacock’s plumage. It disappeared and was replaced with the otherworldly landscape.

As they walked up the fog covered stones, Kazumi was waiting for them in the gazebo from before, sitting on the stairs with one eyebrow up as if they could tell what Kaji was thinking.

“That’s a nice warrior you got there. What’s his name?”

Kaji lolled to the gazebo with a slight limp and sat by their sister.

“Kamui Gakupo. Did you know he’s a self-taught warrior?”

“Oooo I’m shaking in my boots.” Kazumi tapped her sandaled feet imitating fear. “That’s a dumb smile you have there, I haven’t seen it in so long. Looks like your wish for an exciting life was finally granted.”

“Yeah . . .” Kaji supported their body with their arms behind them, looking at the brightly saturated sky of red, purple and turquoise. “Kazumi, I think he might be . . . you know.”

Even at that vague remark, Kazumi understood what Kaji meant. They turned their head with surprise. “Really? How can you be so sure?”

“I dunno, it’s just so many things are similar. I’m getting these strange feelings too.”

“That’s nice, it could very well be possible. But I wouldn’t tell him though, or else you’d be obligating him.”

“Of course I won’t. I’m gonna let him find out himself.”

“Hmm,” Kazumi gave Kaji a stern look.

“What?”

They spoke with no hint of humor in their tone. “Don’t make any impulsive decisions, Kaji.”

“I won’t.” They groaned at Kazumi’s worry. “I am excited, but I’m gonna keep it to myself the best I can.”

“Good. Don’t go breaking your own promises.”

Kaji lightly punched Kazumi’s shoulder, and they punched them back. They stared into the ever-changing sky, that was now an array of green, yellow, and salmon orange.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gawd so much happens here XD  
> I appreciate anyone who is patient with chapters coming out ^^ I want to try and make this a great story but also enjoy it without wracking my brain. If I updated too much I don't think results would be as good as they could be.  
> Thank you! Next chapter is gonna have some more relevations ~~~


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